Jack Vance passed away at home on the evening of Sunday May 26, 2013, ending a long, rich and productive life. Recognized most widely as an author, family and friends also knew a generous, large-hearted, rugged, genial, hard-working, optimistic and unpretentious individual whose curiosity, sense of wonder and sheer love of life were an inspiration in themselves. Author, friend, father and grandfather – there will never be another like Jack Vance.

~ ☆ Raise a Toast to Jack Vance ☆ ~

"At the last moments of the universe, with eternal darkness converging from all sides, surely someone will arise and cry out: ‘Hold back the end for a final moment, while I pay tribute to the gallant brewmasters who have provided us a pathway of golden glory down the fading corridors of time!’ And then, is it not possible that a bright gap will appear in the dark, through which the brewmasters are allowed to proceed, to build a finer universe?"

- Lurulu -

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You are by far, my favorite all-time writer. Why ? I DONT REALLY KNOW except that you are the only writer i can read OVER AND OVER again : your novels (Demon Princes about 10 times, Wyst, Emphyrio, etc ...) and short stories and novelettes (Brains of the Earth, Moon Moth, etc ...), each and evey time with the same pleasure: a mix of wonder, humor, suspense, cleverness and often melancholy.

I just turned 50, and 30 years after discovering Tschai, I don't think I have ever gone 2 months without feeling the NEED, the URGE to pick up one of your books and savor it likea special treat.

And when i had the chance to run into a JV fan, we would become instant buddy, comparing, sharing and pondering why we were so hooked.

Anyway, I know Kirth, Adam, Gatzel, Ghyl and so many others will always stay with me (especially Jantiff who i feel very close to). THANK YOU so much, sir, and may you RIP.

Eric Vuillemey

Eric Vuillemey FRANCE

Wednesday 26 June 2013 18:14

You are by far, my favorite all-time writer. Why ? I DONT REALLY KNOW except that you are the only writer i can read OVER AND OVER again : your novels (Demon Princes about 10 times, Wyst, Emphyrio, etc ...) and short stories and novelettes (Brains
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Goodbye to the most colorful writer I have ever read.
Neniam oni forgesos vin.

Sebjo

Tuesday 25 June 2013 17:53

Goodbye to the most colorful writer I have ever read.
Neniam oni forgesos vin.

Sebjo

Tuesday 25 June 2013 13:08

Read the Green Pearl and was hooked. The Lyonnesse trilogy is one of the few sets of books I reread on an almost annual basis. The shorter stories such as the Blue World are also revisited. I know Jack lived to a very good age but his stories will be missed.

Colin Ainsworth

Tuesday 25 June 2013 13:08

Read the Green Pearl and was hooked. The Lyonnesse trilogy is one of the few sets of books I reread on an almost annual basis. The shorter stories such as the Blue World are also revisited. I know Jack lived to a very good age but his stories will
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Colin Ainsworth

Tuesday 25 June 2013 03:53

Your words have shaped worlds. Thank you for changing mine too.

druid

Tuesday 25 June 2013 03:53

Your words have shaped worlds. Thank you for changing mine too.

druid

Tuesday 25 June 2013 01:11

I have read the bad new just now... What say? For family, friends, fans, readers, Vance always be the grand master of sf and fantasy. May his great mind and imagination survive on our memories and fantasies. Master Vance, I hope the universe embrace you with tender, cause you´re a cosmic mind, much more above us, humans!

Caio Alexandre Bezarias

Tuesday 25 June 2013 01:11

I have read the bad new just now... What say? For family, friends, fans, readers, Vance always be the grand master of sf and fantasy. May his great mind and imagination survive on our memories and fantasies. Master Vance, I hope the universe embrace
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Caio Alexandre Bezarias

Monday 24 June 2013 20:13

Jack,You are still the best writer on this or any other plane/plain.Your prose surpasses poetry.I will continue to read you forever.

I remember borrowing from our public library 'Tschai' when I was 11 years old. Ever since I've enjoyed the many books and stories Jack Vance has written. Reading Jack Vance is one of the most enjoyable things I can think of. Thank you, Jack, for sharing your mind with us.

Kees Stad

Monday 24 June 2013 15:17

I remember borrowing from our public library 'Tschai' when I was 11 years old. Ever since I've enjoyed the many books and stories Jack Vance has written. Reading Jack Vance is one of the most enjoyable things I can think of. Thank you, Jack, for
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Kees Stad

Monday 24 June 2013 13:24

Few authors have been, like Mr Vance, able to paint a whole alien setting in two pages, and make it stick in their reader's mind.A great writer of Adventure has passed.

Jerome

Monday 24 June 2013 13:24

Few authors have been, like Mr Vance, able to paint a whole alien setting in two pages, and make it stick in their reader's mind.A great writer of Adventure has passed.

Jerome

Monday 24 June 2013 13:05

Over the course of the last forty years I have read almost everything Jack has published. The range and unique flavor of his stories, each standing out in my mind as a separate unforgettable entity, have made him both my favorite author and the one I admire most for breadth and depth of his talent. Behind his work, there is the sense of the man himself who I believe was as unique and special as his stories. I wish I had known him personally. I believe being in his company and talking to him would have conjured up the same magic found in his books. Goodbye Jack, thank you for your genius, I will always treasure your work and honor you as a truly great author.

Robert Orme

Monday 24 June 2013 13:05

Over the course of the last forty years I have read almost everything Jack has published. The range and unique flavor of his stories, each standing out in my mind as a separate unforgettable entity, have made him both my favorite author and the one
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Robert Orme

Monday 24 June 2013 11:27

Nobody, but Jack Vance could create such imaginary worlds and give us a glance in the human mind.Thank you sir, for all these beautiful and excitinghours of readingyou will live forever in our minds

Patrick Krajewski

Monday 24 June 2013 11:27

Nobody, but Jack Vance could create such imaginary worlds and give us a glance in the human mind.Thank you sir, for all these beautiful and excitinghours of readingyou will live forever in our minds

Patrick Krajewski

Sunday 23 June 2013 19:32

Goodbye, and thank you.

Tatiana Covington

Sunday 23 June 2013 19:32

Goodbye, and thank you.

Tatiana Covington

Sunday 23 June 2013 19:03

my name is as immaterial as a Demon Princes'. I first read JV in high scool, second year. It was The Eyes of the Overworld. This book not only provided me hours of mre-reading pleasure, it literarly built my young vocabulary. This is a point not often mentioned by the most ferventof JV's readers. JV often spoke of his lacking a precise style, a medotd to his composition. Two points: 1- bring a dictionary! JV glorified the English language as much as a Durell. This places him amongst the finest of writers. 2-JV's "style" was his readers-they always knew what to expect and he never let them down. No, and I mean NO author could create a sense of otherworldliness than Vance.Simply mention the Narrow Land and the brain finds no comparison encept in JV's ouvre. I suspect this is the reason no one can bring him to screen. Only a Kubrick could try, and even he would fail. I dammed wish I could!Frankly, there will never be another,and his loss to us is as profound as the death of Sam Beckett. I do not exagerate.He should have won the prize for literature. Peace to his fundament!

Anonymous

Sunday 23 June 2013 19:03

my name is as immaterial as a Demon Princes'. I first read JV in high scool, second year. It was The Eyes of the Overworld. This book not only provided me hours of mre-reading pleasure, it literarly built my young vocabulary. This is a point not
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Anonymous

Sunday 23 June 2013 11:45

No other author has given me so much enjoyment over the years, and my hope is that his work will continue to find new readers far into the future, perhaps the futures he once imagined might come to pass. Like Baron Bodissey, he too, will be quoted in another author's footnotes.

L Escher

Sunday 23 June 2013 11:45

No other author has given me so much enjoyment over the years, and my hope is that his work will continue to find new readers far into the future, perhaps the futures he once imagined might come to pass. Like Baron Bodissey, he too, will be quoted
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L Escher

Sunday 23 June 2013 05:41

Farewell, dear sir, and many thanks for all the wonderful journeys. May you find your perfect lurulu...

Marinus Bier

Sunday 23 June 2013 05:41

Farewell, dear sir, and many thanks for all the wonderful journeys. May you find your perfect lurulu...

Marinus Bier

Sunday 23 June 2013 04:04

I don't the gift to express myself the way Jack did with words. So I'll simply say thank you Jack. You'll be missed.

Ben Maziarz

Sunday 23 June 2013 04:04

I don't the gift to express myself the way Jack did with words. So I'll simply say thank you Jack. You'll be missed.

Ben Maziarz

Sunday 23 June 2013 02:18

Farewell Jack Vance,as a teenager I have consumed your novels and it appeared to me that for that time I was an inhabitant of the Gaean Reach more than my home planet. Perhaps you did not tell me more about sociolology and philosophy than my later studies but for the first time I could feel the wide variety of human behaviour. This means much to me.Thank You

Klaas Krger

Sunday 23 June 2013 02:18

Farewell Jack Vance,as a teenager I have consumed your novels and it appeared to me that for that time I was an inhabitant of the Gaean Reach more than my home planet. Perhaps you did not tell me more about sociolology and philosophy than my later
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Hail and farewell, Jack Vance! I've loved your works with a passion ever since I read Star King in the 60s. There will never be another author like you. Ave atque vale.

ian jackson

Saturday 22 June 2013 09:29

Hail and farewell, Jack Vance! I've loved your works with a passion ever since I read Star King in the 60s. There will never be another author like you. Ave atque vale.

ian jackson

Saturday 22 June 2013 03:22

Just yesterday, a friend of mine told me that Jack Vance had passed out. I was terribly upset to hear of Jack´s death and I send his family my sincere condolences.
In 1995 I was 29 years old, and I felt that the days of enjoying a novel in the same way as when I was a teenager had definitively fade away. But then I read my first Vance’s novel, Demon Princess. I was absolutely stunned. Every thing what I believed lost were in those pages: interesting plots, marvellous adventures, fascinating characters, and an unsurpassed talent to describe strange but plausible atmospheres. Everything written through an effective and often elegant style that combines a touch of magic and crude reality, humour and seriousness, melancholy and joy… After the Demon Princess I have read the rest of Jack Vance novels and I think that most of them are splendid writings: the trilogy of Lyonesse is likely one of the fresher modern contribution to fairy tales. In my opinion, only a few of Science Fiction and Fantasy writers have achieved so high standards, and none of them in the so imaginative way as Jack Vance did it.
How fortunate we are in having Jack Vance’s novels: they allow us to live, briefly, in other wonderful worlds, and in parallel they make our own world more wonderful. Thank you Mr. Vance.

Enrique Murgui

Enrique Murgui

Saturday 22 June 2013 03:22

Just yesterday, a friend of mine told me that Jack Vance had passed out. I was terribly upset to hear of Jack´s death and I send his family my sincere condolences.
In 1995 I was 29 years old, and I felt that the days of enjoying a novel in the
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Enrique Murgui

Friday 21 June 2013 21:05

Senti a partida dele como se fora a de um velho amigo...

Marcelo Rabello

Friday 21 June 2013 21:05

Senti a partida dele como se fora a de um velho amigo...

Marcelo Rabello

Friday 21 June 2013 18:52

Left us on friday. The day was frugal and full of promise. Songs of praise were sent via radio, tv and interweave. A great scribe gas befel us. Regret it not but rejoice in the gifts that were lain. Sir vance I salute you.

Ralph steele

Friday 21 June 2013 18:52

Left us on friday. The day was frugal and full of promise. Songs of praise were sent via radio, tv and interweave. A great scribe gas befel us. Regret it not but rejoice in the gifts that were lain. Sir vance I salute you.

Ralph steele

Friday 21 June 2013 07:25

I only just learned of your passing. I don't know when I read my first Jack Vance book or which it was, but I do know that I read the first one over 20 years ago and have since read and re read many of your stories. You brought alive a universe, rich and detailed as well as characters as deep as Dicken has written with dialogue that Shakespeare would be proud of. I'm currently re reading the Demon Princes series, which is one of my favourite stories along with Araminta Station, Lyonesse, Showboat World, Big Planet, Tales of a Dying Earth......You've enriched my life and continue to do so. Best wishes to your family and hope that magnificent contribution you have made to literature makes your family proud!!

Andre

Friday 21 June 2013 07:25

I only just learned of your passing. I don't know when I read my first Jack Vance book or which it was, but I do know that I read the first one over 20 years ago and have since read and re read many of your stories. You brought alive a universe,
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Andre

Thursday 20 June 2013 15:45

I read the sad news only recently (not living in the US). Saddening news and a great loss. I loved (love) his books.

Goodbye, Mr. Vance, and with some luck, we'll meet again somewhere in the Alastor Cluster someday.

Kris Dee

Thursday 20 June 2013 15:45

I read the sad news only recently (not living in the US). Saddening news and a great loss. I loved (love) his books.

Goodbye, Mr. Vance, and with some luck, we'll meet again somewhere in the Alastor Cluster someday.

Kris Dee

Thursday 20 June 2013 15:22

You gave us so Much and we are so glad to have discovered your stories and read hem over and over and over again. It smadend us to know that NOS never again such a stort Will see the light of day.We Will Miss Your writings..fare thee well. For us You Will live for ever through vogel, kirth gersen A'dam recht, glawen and all otters. Thank You so Munch for sharing your worlds with us.

Alice Cora and Albert van der Sel

Thursday 20 June 2013 15:22

You gave us so Much and we are so glad to have discovered your stories and read hem over and over and over again. It smadend us to know that NOS never again such a stort Will see the light of day.We Will Miss Your writings..fare thee well. For us
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Alice Cora and Albert van der Sel

Wednesday 19 June 2013 20:01

Jack Vance was the greatest.There will never be another like him.I started reading his stuff when I was 9 and I am now 60 and still reread everything he wrote.Deepest sympathies to his family.

Bob Justice

Wednesday 19 June 2013 20:01

Jack Vance was the greatest.There will never be another like him.I started reading his stuff when I was 9 and I am now 60 and still reread everything he wrote.Deepest sympathies to his family.

Bob Justice

Wednesday 19 June 2013 17:35

I can't even remember when I picked up my first book by you or which one it was. Your books became an obsession from the first page. I have crawled round so many second hand bookshops searching for your books. Only rarely did I arrive triumphantly to the counter. Reading your books made the whole world and every human behavior familiar. It was as if you had read every philosophy there is and showed in your books how useless they were. It was as if you had seen all the different people on earth and put them into your books. No habit and way of life was too strange for you to write about. I love the wide spaces and far away horizons in your books. Where other authors hold on tightly to every tiny idea they have, you just scatter them generously all over. So many times, when one follows one of your heroes, do they cast a fleeting glance in a direction and the scene they see is what other authors would miserly have used for at least a trilogy. There are a few of your books I still have not managed to get hold of and the ones I have can be re-read a million times. I hope your work will get the attention it deserves. The way you use the language is just amazing. You will be missed

Mikaela Olsen

Wednesday 19 June 2013 17:35

I can't even remember when I picked up my first book by you or which one it was. Your books became an obsession from the first page. I have crawled round so many second hand bookshops searching for your books. Only rarely did I arrive triumphantly
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Mikaela Olsen

Wednesday 19 June 2013 16:31

I bought the first Lyonesse novel on a whim some 10 years ago (living as I do in the geographic vicinity of the Elder Isles). Since that first book I have searched and gathered any and all I can find of Jack Vances stories and novels. He was an absolute master of wit, vocabulary and imagination. I am greatly saddened at his passing - the world is certainly a poorer place without his literary richness.

Philip Gilbert

Wednesday 19 June 2013 16:31

I bought the first Lyonesse novel on a whim some 10 years ago (living as I do in the geographic vicinity of the Elder Isles). Since that first book I have searched and gathered any and all I can find of Jack Vances stories and novels. He was an
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Philip Gilbert

Wednesday 19 June 2013 16:06

I never thought somebody could have such an imagination and write about it in such a fantastic way.

Thanks for all your great books, which I will certainly be reading again sometime.

Berend-Jan

Wednesday 19 June 2013 16:06

I never thought somebody could have such an imagination and write about it in such a fantastic way.

Thanks for all your great books, which I will certainly be reading again sometime.

Berend-Jan

Wednesday 19 June 2013 13:26

The most amusing, most observant and most wonderful author ever. Jack Vance will forever be an inspiration for me, and I re-read his books in my collection many times over. Each time,although I know them all intimately, a deep feeling of thanks, and a wry smile from that most amazing of authors..Not a hard act to follow, an impossible one..

nedialskobulgaria

Richard Brown

Wednesday 19 June 2013 13:26

The most amusing, most observant and most wonderful author ever. Jack Vance will forever be an inspiration for me, and I re-read his books in my collection many times over. Each time,although I know them all intimately, a deep feeling of thanks, and
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Richard Brown

Tuesday 18 June 2013 18:42

When I read "Son of the tree", it was love at first sight. Love for your prose, your imagination, your humor. Your stories made me feel recognized and loved.

Kees Huizing

Tuesday 18 June 2013 18:42

When I read "Son of the tree", it was love at first sight. Love for your prose, your imagination, your humor. Your stories made me feel recognized and loved.

Kees Huizing

Tuesday 18 June 2013 14:49

Jack Vance has been my favourite writer for many many years. I have read and re-read his wonderful books over and over and never tired of his great prose. For me,as for many others,Jack Vance will never die. He has just gone to another universe to make it a better place.

Alex

Tuesday 18 June 2013 14:49

Jack Vance has been my favourite writer for many many years. I have read and re-read his wonderful books over and over and never tired of his great prose. For me,as for many others,Jack Vance will never die. He has just gone to another universe to
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I've just learned the sad news of Jack's passing as I regularly check a certain website to see if Hollywood has finally decided to start shooting his works.My sincere condolences are with the Vance family and Jack's friends at this time.His vision, wit and masterful storytelling are a wonderful and enduring tribute to his greatness. I'm glad that his long life meant that he must surely have known how highly regarded he was to millions and I hope his family will draw comfort from that enduring legacy.

Atlantia

Sunday 16 June 2013 13:11

I've just learned the sad news of Jack's passing as I regularly check a certain website to see if Hollywood has finally decided to start shooting his works.My sincere condolences are with the Vance family and Jack's friends at this time.His
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Atlantia

Sunday 16 June 2013 02:45

Ciao

riccardo visani scozzi

Sunday 16 June 2013 02:45

Ciao

riccardo visani scozzi

Saturday 15 June 2013 20:23

Thanks Jack, for the joy, the dreams, the sheer pleasure and light you brought to this world.

Anonymous

Saturday 15 June 2013 20:23

Thanks Jack, for the joy, the dreams, the sheer pleasure and light you brought to this world.

Anonymous

Saturday 15 June 2013 18:55

My favorite writer in any genre, I think he also serves as an example of a life well-lived.

Mike Arsham

Saturday 15 June 2013 18:55

My favorite writer in any genre, I think he also serves as an example of a life well-lived.

Mike Arsham

Saturday 15 June 2013 13:40

For anyone interested who missed it, a couple years ago Starship Sofa did an audio interview with Fred Pohl and Jack Vance. Very fascinating stuff.

I was re-reading the Demon Princes for the umpteenth time when I read the news.

Farewell Jack, I hope you found your lurulu.

Chris

Saturday 15 June 2013 07:57

I was re-reading the Demon Princes for the umpteenth time when I read the news.

Farewell Jack, I hope you found your lurulu.

Chris

Saturday 15 June 2013 07:30

I hadn't heard about his death here in Germany, even though I read several newspapers. It's a shame that Jack's death went unnoticed here.I found out because in an internet forum someone asked about our favourite authors and when I wanted to link the Wikipedia article I saw the date of his death.I hope the gods grant Jack a long tour through all the worlds he has created until he retires on Sirene, wearing a Dragon Conqueror.

Anonymous

Saturday 15 June 2013 07:30

I hadn't heard about his death here in Germany, even though I read several newspapers. It's a shame that Jack's death went unnoticed here.I found out because in an internet forum someone asked about our favourite authors and when I wanted to link
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Anonymous

Friday 14 June 2013 16:04

May his work continue to inspire an delight generations to come!

K. Debacq

Friday 14 June 2013 16:04

May his work continue to inspire an delight generations to come!

K. Debacq

Friday 14 June 2013 12:40

I loved the verbal skills he gave even his most minor characters. I liked his descriptions of sausages. I was especially grateful to get access to a large selection of his books when my dad was particularly ill and needed cheering up. He devoured Vance’s books, as did I and we both learned to love them. Thank you from us both.

Nigel W

Friday 14 June 2013 12:40

I loved the verbal skills he gave even his most minor characters. I liked his descriptions of sausages. I was especially grateful to get access to a large selection of his books when my dad was particularly ill and needed cheering up. He devoured
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Nigel W

Friday 14 June 2013 10:51

You've been enhancing my life since the 60s. Baron Bodissey's observations are part of my brain. Thank you so much Jack. You are part of the engines of the universe now, and rightly so. Thank you again.

P. Bondante

Friday 14 June 2013 10:51

You've been enhancing my life since the 60s. Baron Bodissey's observations are part of my brain. Thank you so much Jack. You are part of the engines of the universe now, and rightly so. Thank you again.

P. Bondante

Friday 14 June 2013 09:27

I think his books were probably the greatest influence in my life that got me on this road and made me want to explore the miracle that is our world for the past eight years. The meter of his books I discovered in my local library made for the most magical summer ever. Thank you, Jack.

Toffie

Friday 14 June 2013 09:27

I think his books were probably the greatest influence in my life that got me on this road and made me want to explore the miracle that is our world for the past eight years. The meter of his books I discovered in my local library made for the most
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Toffie

Friday 14 June 2013 07:12

I've felt like I've rarely regretted the loss of someone. There has never been anyone like him nor will there. It is the only author to whom, late teens, I idolized.Thanks for making me dream.

Antonio Lpez

Friday 14 June 2013 07:12

I've felt like I've rarely regretted the loss of someone. There has never been anyone like him nor will there. It is the only author to whom, late teens, I idolized.Thanks for making me dream.